Finding the Past
by swimfast12
Summary: Short fic, ProsperHornet. About finding her family. Also tiny hints of IdaVictor and MoscaOC
1. No Time Like The Present

**-Okay, so after watching the movie to the book, I began brainstorming for a ProsperHornet romance, maybe one that takes place a year afterward. Why, you ask? Oh, it was just that I was mildly annoyed with the fact that there are about two such stories in FFN. Flashback-"WHAT KIND OF IDIOTIC SITE IS THIS?" Ahem, well, maybe more than mildly. But you get the point. So this might stink, but I don't care, as long as it exists…-**SF12

It was quiet in Casa Spavento. An exhausted Ida Spavento had gone to bed late, after some work in her darkroom. She was too tired and focused on sleep, not noticing that she had forgotten to check on her adopted children. Normally it wouldn't have mattered, as they would have all been asleep. But tonight was different.

Hornet sat in a chair by her bed, fully dressed. She hadn't even attempted to go to sleep. Lately her thoughts had drifted toward people from her life before she met the Thief Lord. She had never told her new family, or Scipio and the others, or anyone about her life beforehand. They all guessed it was a painful topic and never brought it up. She had put it all behind her when she left her original home, but one part of it kept coming back to haunt her. The part that hurt the most.

Prosper awoke to quiet sobbing from Hornet's room. He bolted up in his bed-he had never heard Hornet cry in the year or so he had known her, which meant this had to be important.

He thought about their relationship as he quickly dressed. He supposed it was slightly obvious that they liked each other. Or, all right, maybe they were love. They never said anything aloud, but Prosper could easily remember an incident that may have proved it. It was on one of the first days with Ida, and they were taking a trip around Venice in her motorboat. Hornet had leaned against him, and he, without thinking about it, had put his arm around her. They stayed like that for most of the trip. Bo didn't notice a thing, but Prosper though he saw Ida and Victor, who'd also come along, exchanging amused glances. _Well, I can snigger all I want at them, because I vividly remember when Victor had first asked Ida out._

He knocked softly at Hornet's door, and when there was no answer, he pushed it open. Hornet was quickly trying to wipe away her tears and look normal, but it didn't fool him in the slightest. "Oh, hey Prosper. Kind of late for a visit."

"What were you crying about?"

She opened her mouth to lie, then sighed and decided she had to tell someone.

"Well, it was about…my old life. Memories and such-bad memories." She told him, not knowing any other way to say it.

"I knowing you don't like to talk about it, but maybe if you get it out of your system…" Prosper said gently.

"Well, my family lived in Castello. My parents fought, they were both drunk half the time-it was terrible. My dad was the worse. If we tried to intervene between the fight he'd hit us. Hard. So we learned to just avoid them. But the alcoholism grew, and soon he would just hit us for no reason. I got sick of it, and just left one night." She didn't go on.

"When you say we…"

Hornet bowed her head sadly. "My younger sister Romana believed there was good in the both of my parents. She wouldn't have come with me, but I feel bad that I left her with them. If I could only find her again."

"Why don't you?"

She sighed again. "I'm afraid of what I'll find.

"If you go, I'll come with you." Prosper stated.

Hornet's head jerked up. "Really?"

He smiled. "I'd do anything for you."

She was speechless for a moment, and then her true character began to shine through the depressed girl on the outside.

"Right, then. Let's go."

Prosper looked incredulously at her. "Now? Tonight?"

She grinned. "No time like the present."

-**I'm gonna let you in on a little secret-if you press the review button and type what you think about this story, something good will happen. Oh and the boat scene-memory comes from the movie of Thief Lord, not the book. I'm really not sure whether or not I'll continue with this story, might not be worth it...depending on the review count-**SF12


	2. Unfolding Events

-**I have a great urge to finish this fic quickly and get back to my greatly neglected Star Wars one. I also added the time changes. SO…2nd chapter in 2 days is here-**SF12

Despite Hornet's protests, Prosper managed to convince her that they couldn't leave just then. Quickly he scribbled a note to Ida and Bo, telling them not to worry, and what he and Hornet planned to do. Meanwhile, Hornet fetched all of the thousand lire notes saved from their allowances.

Adding a signature to the note, Prosper nodded to Hornet and they headed toward Castello, Venice's poor slum section. The family motorboat would easily wake Bo or Ida, so they had to walk. Halfway across Venice.

It wasn't so bad, since; after all, they walked all over the city when scouting for Scipio. But, despite this, they were still dog-tired by the time they reached Hornet's former home.

It was a dilapidated building, with a strong smell of mildew around the door. _It's_ _barely habitable for a rat, much less a family of four _Prosper thought. Wellhe reasoned as Hornet raised a shaky hand to knock, _in Castello it's probably a dream home._

They held their breath, waiting for the door to open.

But it didn't open.

They sat there for several moments, before knocking again, much louder. No response.

"Hornet? I-I don't think they're here." Prosper whispered.

She nodded. "One more try, and we'll…" she stifled a yawn. "And we'll try someplace else. Prosper nodded and reached up to knock…

"Aaaagh! Yeh not gonna find anyone there, they've been gone fo' months. Now, will yeh please leave so I can get some rest!" An aggravated voice startled the pair, making them spin around.

An unkempt, squat man looked irritably at them from the side of his shanty, the one next to the Grimani's old house.

"You said they moved? Where to?" Hornet said hurriedly.

Noticing the urgency in her voice, the man said. "Hmm. Yeh know, it depends. How much money do yeh have?"

Sighing and muttering "Vagrants…" Prosper pressed a few thousand lire notes into the man's palm.

"'Kay, they moved to Greece. Don' ask me where, but it's a big city."

Hornet nearly fell over in despair. "GREECE?" _It's out of the country…_

"_Now _will yeh get outta here?"

Scowling at the man, Prosper led an upset Hornet away from the neighborhood.

"We can still find her, Hornet."

"What? But, how?"

"I don't know, but we will." Prosper said determinedly. "Anyway, we should find a place to stay for the night. That warehouse where Mosca and Riccio live isn't too far, and I'm sure they'll let us stay the night. Can you make it there?"

"Of course." But her actions proved her words false, and she soon couldn't keep up.

"Sorry, Prop. I just-I didn't get any sleep and-"

"Here, this might work." He scooped her up into his arms and began walking again, ignoring her sleepy, half-hearted arguments.

It was harder to walk supporting two people, but after a while they arrived at the old, abandoned warehouse that Mosca and Riccio now called home. It took some very loud knocking, but eventually a very tired-looking Riccio answered the door.

"Wha? Prop? What are you doing here?" said Riccio, taking in Prosper's appearance from the exhausted expression and the sleeping Hornet in his arms.

Mosca had enough sense to help the two onto some mattresses, though Riccio continued to bombard Prosper with questions, which were all answered with a "Tomorrow, Riccio…"

_**10:00, the next day-the warehouse**_

Prosper awoke feeling afresh despite the escapade the night before. He got up to find Mosca sitting on a makeshift bed of blankets, having given Prosper his own mattress, mending a tool.

He looked inquiringly at Prosper and asked, "Why are you and Hornet in Castello, anyway?"

"Erm… long story, but Hornet and I are on a trip, you might call it. A very important trip, especially to her."

"Ah, but important to you, also. You've got that same look in your eye when you were so determined to make sure Bo was kept away from the Hartliebs. Now you're focused greatly on helping Hornet with whatever it is you two are doing. And I think I know why." Mosca gave a sly head-jerk toward the soundly sleeping Hornet.

"Oh, be quiet, you." But Prosper was grinning through his blush.

"But, anyways," Mosca said, adopting a more serious tone. "Do Ida or Victor know this 'trip'?"

This comment wiped the smile off Prosper's face. "I left Ida and Bo a letter, but…"

Mosca sighed and ran a hand through his short, frizzy hair. "If I know Ida, she'll understand. She'll be worried sick, and she'll try to follow you, but she will understand."

"Yeah, you're right. We'd better get going soon. Do you think I could borrow some money? I hate to ask, but we've got a long way to travel."

"Of course. Just relax, and wait for Hornet to get up. You'll be on your way soon, and I hope your journey goes well."

So did Prosper.

_**11:00, the same day-Casa Spavento**_

"Prosper! You've been sleeping in long enough! Come on, Lucia made jelly-filled croissants…" Ida's statement ended when she saw that Prosper's room was empty.

_He's probably talking to Hornet._ She thought, not immediately worried. But when she saw that Hornet's room, was empty, she began to fret. As she turned to leave, a slip of paper caught her eye…

_Dear Ida and Bo,_

Hornet and I have to leave now, or rather, need to. She wants to find some things from her past, and I'm going to help her. Don't worry; there shouldn't be any danger. We'll be fine.

_Love,_

_ Prop_

Ida wasn't fooled. No danger, her foot. No, something was going on. She knew that, while Prosper was probably telling mostly the truth, Hornet's past was no fairy tale. There was danger somewhere. She went downstairs, and told Giaco, who was just leaving, to find her fiancé, the detective Victor Getz. He could help.

Once Victor was on his way, Ida allowed herself a small, secretive smile. While she was still worried about Prosper and Hornet…she would've given quite a lot to see what events unfolded between them…

**-Done and done! Now, I'll graciously allow you to review…'please'-**SF12


	3. 922 Northwind Way

-**Thanks to my loyal reviewers, I am inspired to post quickly. So, read the 3rd chapter-**SF12

Mosca's boat got Prosper and Hornet to the dock, and after a happy goodbye, the pair began to look for a ferry of some sort to Greece. Within moments, they had found one such ship, heading to Athens. The price wasn't exactly cheap, and took almost all their money, but they managed.

The ship was rather cramped and small, not at all like the big passenger vessels. It had seats and a tiny stand that sold food. But it was going where they needed to go, and that was all that mattered.

Even before the ship had cast off, Hornet was drumming her fingers nervously on the armrest between the two seats. She had not, in her rush, though to bring one of her books along, and as a result, she had nothing to distract her from what lay ahead.

"Just relax. You'll have plenty of time to worry when you get there." Prosper said soothingly.

"I _can't _relax, Prop. You know how important this trip is to me! Something could've happened to Romana or…"

"Hornet." He said, cutting her off. "What if were to show you a way to calm down?"

"_How_?" she said desperately.

He leaned in and softly kissed her. It was a beautiful kiss and lasted a long while. And Hornet loved every bit of it.

Eventually, the kiss had to break for lack of air. She mentally cursed oxygen-_Why did it have to be a necessity, anyway?_

Prosper looked into her eyes, reddening slightly, and said, "Well? Calmed down?"

Hornet smiled. "Well…you've rid me of my worries for the time being. But as for calming me down…" Her eyes twinkled slightly. "You've rather excited me."

He grinned, still blushing, and changed the subject. But the kiss never truly left either of their minds.

When they began to near the edge of Athens, Prosper grabbed a stock of food from the stand, so they wouldn't have to worry about nourishment while searching. Meanwhile, Hornet went back to fretting.

"What if we've gone to the wrong city? What if…"

"Again, relax. That jerk told us they lived in a large city. What city in Greece is larger than Athens? Besides, I know a way we could find out if they live here. C'mon."

Disembarking, the two dodged the gaggles of tourists snapping pictures at everything in sight. Prosper scanned the buildings along the dock, and then spotted the one he was looking for. He strode over to it, Hornet following.

The building in particular was a small information kiosk, where a bored-looking middle-aged woman manned the counter.

"Excuse me, but do you perhaps have an area phone book?"

The woman nodded blankly and went to fetch an enormous volume.

Flipping through it to a page marked GR-, Prosper asked, "Hornet? What's your father's name?"

"Bruno."

He skimmed through the small list of Grimani's, and found it. "Aha. Bruno Grimani, 922 Northwind Way."

Hornet immediately headed in a general northwest direction, and Prosper had to jog forward to keep up. Her anxiety was obvious-that and her need to get to Romana. Her protectiveness of her sister reminded much of Bo and him.

He had began to wonder if they now knew how Scipio and Victor felt, tramping around Venice after crooks, when Hornet stopped abruptly in front of a signpost. It was written in Greek and he wondered vaguely how they would know if this was it, since neither of them spoke Greek. It had only been a miracle that the kiosk-manager understood Italian. But Hornet looked up at the sign and whispered, "This is it. I know it." And she slowly began to walk down the street.

Prosper didn't doubt her judgment-it was _her_ sister after all-and was behind her all the way till they reached a house marked 922.

Hornet stopped, taking a deep breath, and tried to walk over to the house. But all her bravery seemed to have deserted her.

Then, a warm hand grasped hers and Prosper reassuringly nodded at her. She felt so much…safer when he was around. Her courage returning, they slowly strode up the walk to the door.

Still holding her hand, Prosper questioned, "Should I…"

She shook her head wordlessly and reached up to knock.

-**And that's the end of the chapter! Cliffhangers rule…anyway R&R and I'llwrite the end, I'm not sure if it'll be 2 more chapters or 1. Probably one**-SF12


	4. Life and Love

-**Finishing this fic, here's the last chapter; I'm making some of this up along the way, and it's kinda longer than the others-**SF12

From outside, they heard a faint "I'll get it" after their knock.

A girl's voice.

The door swung open, and a girl of perhaps eleven appeared. She looked much like Hornet, minus the long braid. And when she saw Hornet, her jaw dropped.

"Ho-…_Hornet_? But…" She seemed at a loss for words.

Prosper stepped back so the two could embrace, enjoying the wonderful scene.

Finally finding her voice, Romana whispered, "You shouldn't have come back. I've truly missed you, but you have to get out of here." She glanced fearfully into the house.

As if on cue, a booming male voice resounded from inside the house. "Romana? What the devil you doing?" A burly man stomped toward them. He was very red in the face, and a bottle of whiskey hung from his left hand. He stopped dead at the sight of Hornet.

"YOU! Caterina!" he bellowed drunkenly. "You came back? After what you did, and now you're back?" He moved towards Hornet, dropped the bottle, his ham-sized fists raised.

Prosper stepped protectively in front of her. Signor Grimani's red face-color mixed with an enraged purple. "Boy, I dunno who you are, but get outta the way!" He snarled.

"No. You're not hurting her!"

"Boy, if you don't get out of the way, I'm gonna…" Suddenly, a gunshot rang out. A bullet ricocheted off the doorframe. The four people stopped their conflict for just one moment, looking around curiously.

Victor Getz and Scipio Fortunato ran up the drive, revolvers drawn. "I suggest you freeze, Signor Grimani. That was just a warning shot."

Grimani did not go quietly. "People comin' onto my property, tellin' me what t' do…what kinda authority you think you got?"

Victor looked coldly at him. "Signor Grimani, I'm a private investigator. I'm arresting you on charges of child abuse and attempted assault. Scipio, if you will?"

Scipio nodded, flashed a brief smile at Prosper and the Grimani sisters, and then led a resisting Bruno Grimani towards the downtown Athens Police Station.

Victor now turned toward the remaining trio. "Now, you have some explaining to do. What in all of Europe possessed you to go on this journey?"

"Don't tell me you wouldn't have done the same thing, Victor." Prosper replied.

Victor tried to remain cross, but a smile tugged at his lips. "Doesn't mean it's smart thing to do. Well, we'll discuss on the way back to Venice. Come on, Ida and Bo are truly worried about you." He looked at Romana with curiosity, then said "You, too."

"What about Mom?" Hornet ventured, but stopped at the look on her sister' face. Romana said only one word, and she spit it out as if she detested saying it. "_Cirrhosis_!" Hornet was barely saddened at this, for unlike her sister, she had never seen much good in either of their parents.

Prosper grinned. "Imagine, we spend all this time try to get to Athens-we've been here for all of an hour."

_**7:30, the same day, on an Italy-bound ship**_

Once aboard the ship, Victor explained how Ida, worried sick, had sent him and Scipio after Prosper and Hornet, tracing their steps to Mosca and Riccio's place. And from there to Athens.

Prosper didn't think he had ever talked so much, and next to Victor, he talked the least. Hornet and Romana relived what few happy memories they had together and began new ones. The group, including Scipio, spoke briefly of their adventure with the lion's wing and Conte Renzo "Valaresso".

Prosper slowly and gradually fell silent, eventually zoning out of the conversation and closing his eyes. However, his ears did perk up slightly when his name was mentioned.

"So, Hornet. Uh-what's your relationship to Prosper?" Romana asked slowly. Though he couldn't see Hornet, she knew her face was flushed with red.

"Erm…I like him."

"_Like_?"

"Oh, shut up." Prosper smiled as he dozed off.

**_Later that night, Casa Spavento_**

Ida greeted the adventurous pair with a bone-cracking hug. It seemed that they had been gone for weeks on end, not three days. Bo's grin had never been wider, happy to have his big brother back. Riccio and Mosca were there as well; glad to see their friends safe. But through the joy, Prosper's eyes met Hornet's, and the two slowly and inconspicuously left the scene.

The two walked for a while, not speaking, until reaching a small square and bridge.

Stopping on the bridge, Hornet again looked at Prosper and asked softly, "Why did you do this for me?"

"I told you; I'd do anything for you."

"Yes, yes, but why did you do this thing in particular for me?"

He sighed. "A lot of reasons, but the biggest is that I knew how you felt. Do you remember the night when the police found you and Bo in the Stella?"

"Of course." How could she forget?

"That night, I was the most miserable, hopeless person in all of Venice. The two people I loved the most in this world were gone, and I thought I'd never see them again."

He moved closer to her; and then it hit her.

"Did you just say…?" But he cut her off with a kiss.

"What do you think?" he whispered in her ear.

She smiled at him, kissing him again before finding the right words. "I think we're in love. Both of us. I also think everyone is going to have a field day over this."

He laughed, fluttering her heart.

And though Riccio and Mosca teased them mercilessly, love shrouded them all around, making them ignore those comments. And besides, from the way Romana and Mosca were eyeing each other, there might soon be another romance in the group. Who knew?

But they did know one thing-life was not life without love.

**-I really dunno about that ending, but I had use the MoscaOc part somehow. Please review and tell me what you think. Oh, and while I'm at it, I'm thanking whomever gave me ideas, whether you know it or not. And that Life-Love quote might not be mine, it sounds like what some one else would've said. Like, JKR or C.S. Lewis. Go figure. But if I've stolen that quote from someone, I apologize. If you liked it, great, but I don't plan on making a sequel, I have a total of zero ideas-**SF12


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